Current Events in July 2020

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released an update about hand sanitizers that may be fatal to those who use them. The agency now lists the total number of banned products at 75. 

The reason? Simple... those products contain dangerous and potentially fatal levels of methanol (aka wood alcohol) -- the same ingredient found in windshield wiper cleanser and anti-freeze.

New additions to the toxicity list

Following up on earlier warnings to consumers, the new additions include two more hand sanitizers produced in Mexico:

• Optimus Instant Hand Sanitizer

• Hand Sanitizer Disinfectant Gel

The recalls on those hand sanitizers extend to large scale retailers like Walmart, as well as other national retailers. 

Forewarned is forearmed

The FDA is reminding consumers of three important things related to hand sanitizers:

1. Methanol is particularly problematic as an ingredient because when absorbed through the skin, it can produce toxic effects such as blindness. Much worse, if ingested, it can prove lethal, as it did recently in New Mexico.

2. Many of the products that contain methanol are mislabeled, which could mislead consumers into thinking that the products are safe.

3. The best way people can prevent the spread of infections and decrease the risk of getting sick is by washing their hands with regular soap and water. 

“There is currently no evidence that consumer antiseptic wash products (also known as antibacterial soaps) are any more effective at preventing illness than washing with plain soap and water,” the FDA advises. “In fact, some data suggests that antibacterial ingredients could do more harm than good in the long-term and more research is needed.”

Lastly, if you haven’t taken the FDA’s hand sanitizer quiz, now might be a good time to see how well-versed you really are on the subject. You can find it here.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) tally as compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Previous numbers in parentheses.)

Total U.S. confirmed cases: 4,057,100 (3,987,584)

Total U.S. deaths: 144,524 (143,446)

Total global cases: 15,566,087 (15,284,136)

Total global deaths: 634,594 (624,665)

California overtakes New York with most cases

The coronavirus (COVID-19) situation in California has gone from very good to very bad in a few short weeks. On Thursday, officials reported that the number of daily deaths from the virus rose to 157 from the previous high of 149, with the total number of cases in the state surpassing New York.

The total number of deaths hit 8,027. In June, California was beginning to reopen its economy but backtracked when cases began to mount. On Wednesday, California set a record for daily new cases -- 12,807 -- then came close to breaking it on Thursday.

Statistically, the only good news involves hospitalizations. State health officials report 6,825 coronavirus patients are in the hospital, with 1,978 of them in the intensive care unit (ICU), a decline from the previous week for both categories.

Experts urge shutdown as nation records 4 million cases

It would be painful, but a group of 150 medical experts says the U.S. should shut down the economy again and start over in an effort to control the raging virus. They issued their advice as the number of U.S. coronavirus cases rose past 4 million.

The people signing the letter to U.S. political leaders include medical experts, scientists, teachers, and nurses. They said a national policy is needed to bring the pandemic under control.

"Right now we are on a path to lose more than 200,000 American lives by November 1st. Yet, in many states, people can drink in bars, get a haircut, eat inside a restaurant, get a tattoo, get a massage, and do myriad other normal, pleasant, but non-essential activities," the experts wrote.

Fauci: “It’s almost your worst nightmare”

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), has offered a soothing and reassuring voice since the beginning of the pandemic. But he’s no longer sugar-coating the situation he sees.

"We are living, right now, through a historic pandemic outbreak. And, we are, right now, in a situation where we do not see any particular end in sight," Fauci said in public remarks this week.

Fauci said the characteristics of the coronavirus, and the fact that there is no human immunity, makes it “a perfect storm,” and for public health officials, “it’s almost your worst nightmare.”

Mazda ready to get back to normal

Despite the surge in coronavirus cases in a number of states, Mazda North America says it plans to resume full production at its assembly plants next month.

The automaker says it made the decision, in part, because of the increased demand for its products in June, with a sales increase of nearly 11 percent.

It cites increased demand for its three-row CX-9 and MX-5 roadster, with sales volumes growing approximately 50 percent and 25 percent, respectively.

Let there be light

Early on in the pandemic, it was established that the coronavirus can’t live very long when exposed to ultraviolet light. Signify, a lighting manufacturer, has announced that it is ramping up production of more ultraviolet lighting products.

In an interview today with CNBC, Signify CEO Eric Rondolat disclosed that the company will launch 12 new families of the products by the end of the year. 

“We have laid down a plan to multiply by eight times our production capacity and that will come in two steps,” he said.

The increase will come in two steps -- one in September and the other in December. 

Around the nation

• Indiana: Add Indiana to the list of states dealing with a spike in coronavirus cases. On Thursday, state health department officials reported 954 new cases and 17 deaths.

• Louisiana: Louisiana has joined the 100,000 club. The state, along with 11 others, now has diagnosed more than 100,000 cases of the coronavirus. The state hit that milestone on Thursday when it reported nearly 2,300 new cases. 

• North Dakota: The North Dakota Board of Higher Education passed a resolution on Thursday that urges the state’s 11 colleges and universities to require masks on campus this fall. Though the state has reported a small number of coronavirus cases in the spring, it has joined the growing number of other states dealing with a summer surge.

The U.S. Mint, grappling with a worsening national coin shortage, is asking consumers to help by spending cash and using exact change.

The Mint has been under pressure over the last couple of months because of changes in consumer buying behavior, a byproduct of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The normal circulation of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters has been disrupted for two reasons.

Consumers aren’t spending as much money as in normal times, and when they do spend, they may be more likely to use a credit or debit card. As a result, there aren’t as many coins in circulation on a daily basis. For the most part, they’re staying in consumers’ pockets.

Coins aren’t readily available

According to the Mint, the combination of the falloff in retail sales activity and significantly decreased deposits from third-party coin processors has increased orders for more coins, well above what the Mint normally contributes for coin circulation.

“Simply put, there is an adequate amount of coins in the economy, but the slowed pace of circulation has meant that sufficient quantities of coins are sometimes not readily available where needed,” Mint officials said in a statement. “You may be experiencing this in your local communities. We are asking for your help in improving this coin supply issue.”

Officials say if more consumers would make purchases with cash, where possible, and pay with exact change, it would go a long way toward alleviating the problem. Consumers who have containers full of coins can help by taking them to a bank or a coin redemption kiosk that are often found in supermarkets.

How retailers are responding

Many retailers are asking for exact change for purchases and are taking additional steps to try to alleviate the coin shortage. Convenience store chain Wawa is asking customers to pay with cash to round up the purchase to the nearest dollar, with the change donated to its charity.

Kroger has made exact change an official policy at some of its stores, telling customers paying with cash to have the exact amount or donate the difference to its Zero Hunger Zero Waste foundation. Some 7-Eleven stores are making it worth customers’ effort by offering a free Slurpee to customers who trade $5 in coins for $5 cash.

Some smaller retailers that have been unable to secure enough coins on a daily basis are refusing cash payments that are not for the exact amount. U.S. Mint officials hope to discourage that, noting that the millions of consumers without a credit or debit card have no alternative but to pay with cash.

Boeing has gone through the wringer over safety issues related to its 737 MAX aircraft, but now some of its other 737 models have raised eyebrows at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

On Friday, FAA officials released an Airworthiness Directive for approximately 2,000 Boeing 737 aircraft that have been put in storage during the coronavirus pandemic. The reason? Officials say that the planes may have experienced corrosion while sitting idle and that they may be prone to engine failure. 

The directive covers certain older Boeing aircraft that have not been operated within the last seven days or more. Airlines that have these older 737 planes in their fleet are being asked to check for corrosion on engine valves.

Boeing admitted that the planes indicated by the FAA “can be more susceptible to corrosion” because they have been used infrequently during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The FAA’s directive may have been prompted by an Alaska Airlines report about an engine shutdown that occurred on one of its Boeing aircraft earlier this month. CNBC reports that the airline told the FAA that it experienced the issue on one of its flights from Seattle to Austin on July 15. The engine shutdown led to a safe emergency landing.

Steve Wozniak, one of the most well-known tech pioneers in the U.S., has filed a lawsuit with 17 other plaintiffs against YouTube over videos that use his likeness and likenesses of other influential people to push Bitcoin scams. 

The suit claims that the video platform has done nothing to stop videos that seek to draw in victims with phony Bitcoin giveaway events. The scam tends to use images or videos of Wozniak or other public figures like Barack Obama or Elon Musk, and they promise that users can send in cryptocurrency and get double their money back. 

If that notion gives you pause, then that’s probably a good thing. However, it appears that not everyone has the same reservations. The suit claims that these scams have cost consumers “millions of dollars.” Worse yet, the plaintiffs accuse YouTube of allowing the scams to be perpetrated so that it can profit by attaching advertising to the videos.

“With full knowledge of this scam, YouTube resisted taking the scam videos down, allowed them to multiply, and contributed to the scam by making them appear legitimate. YouTube and Google took the further step of promoting and profiting from these scams by providing advertising that targeted users who were most likely to be harmed,” the suit states.

A tale of two scams

In its argument, the suit makes frequent references to a massive hack of the social media platform Twitter that occurred earlier this month. Similarly in that case, the accounts of many celebrities and public figures were compromised to push fake cryptocurrency promotions. However, the plaintiffs of the YouTube suit say that Twitter handled the situation very differently. 

“Twitter acted swiftly and decisively to shut down these accounts and to protect its users from the scam,” the suit states. “In stark contrast, for months now, [YouTube] has been unapologetically hosting, promoting, and directly profiting from similar scams.”

“In essence, unknown fraudsters scam YouTube users out of cryptocurrency using the names and likenesses of Wozniak and other celebrities as bait, and YouTube takes its cut of these illegally gotten proceeds by knowingly and willingly selling those same fraudsters targeted advertising that drive additional YouTube users to fraudulent promotions and videos, thereby further fueling the scam and keeping the money flowing.”

The lawsuit is seeking monetary relief for damages and injunctive relief against YouTube that would require it to remove all scam videos that bear Wozniak’s likeness. 

Roku -- the streaming device company -- has revealed the findings of its 2020 Cord Cutting study, showing that consumers are cable-cutting like crazy amid the coronavirus outbreak.

The study found that an estimated 32 percent of all U.S. households with TV sets live their lives without any kind of traditional pay TV subscription (cable, satellite), and an additional 25 percent of households that Roku pegs as “Cord Shavers” cut back on their service. Peeling back another layer, 45 percent of those Cord Shaver households said they’re pretty much a sure shot to cut the cord completely in the next six months.

"While we entered 2020 with significant momentum around cord cutting, we’re now seeing that the COVID-19 pandemic and the pause of live sports has caused consumers to rethink how they access home entertainment and what they are willing to pay," said Roku Chief Marketing Officer Matthew Anderson. 

"It’s clear that value matters more than ever and the abundance of free content, free trials to premium streaming services and the savings that consumers achieve are fueling the shift to streaming."

Sports shutdown fuels cord cutting

Nearly all of the cord-cutters say they’re happy they made the move. In fact, many admit that they wish they had done it sooner. When asked what factors led to making the switch from cable/satellite bundles to streaming-only, saving money on home entertainment overall came back as the predominant reason. 

With the pandemic shutting down most of the sports world, that’s reason enough for sports fans, in particular, to cut the cord. 

About one-fifth (17 percent) of recent Cord Cutter households said they would come back to traditional pay TV if and when live sports returns. Another 31 percent said they are likely to subscribe to a single live sports streaming service, like ESPN or NFL Sunday Ticket, rather than pay for a package that includes sports or other channels they’re not interested in. The remainder of the Traditional and Cord Shaver households (52 percent) say they are likely to reduce their packages even further if televised live sports on traditional pay TV do not return.

Roku is playing hardball

Roku’s original angle was to frame itself as a neutral party to content creators and as an affordable option with cord-cutters. However, now that the service has picked up some steam -- doubling its user base in the last two years -- and with NBC/Universal and Disney buying up the Hulu’s of the world, Roku’s starting to flex its muscles a bit.

“Roku has every right to play hardball with content providers. The company has created a valuable and popular platform for streaming video, and monetizing that platform is its job,” suggests TechHive’s Jared Newman. 

Newman cites Roku’s clash with Fox in February, when the company went nose-to-nose with the provider and threatened to pull its apps three days before the Super Bowl, reportedly over advertising revenues. “The companies worked things out in time for the big game, but not without angering Roku owners in the process. We’re now seeing the cycle repeat itself with HBO Max and Peacock,” he said.

Plastics, like straws and contact lenses, have been found to build up in the ocean, and it could take hundreds of years before they ever disintegrate. 

Now, a new study suggests that plastic pollution will likely get much worse over the next two decades if left unchecked. Researchers are predicting that if the current rate of pollution keeps up without intervention, pollution could increase threefold by 2040. 

“There’s no single solution to ocean plastic pollution, but through rapid and concerted action we can break the plastic wave,” said researcher Tom Dillon. “As this report shows, we can invest in a future of reduced waste, better health outcomes, greater job creation, and a cleaner and more resilient environment for both people and nature.” 

Preventing a growing problem

To measure and predict the plastic pollution in the oceans, the researchers created a model that helped them track current pollution progress. After adjusting the model for several potential interventions, they predicted what the oceans could look like in the next 20 years. 

Though the study showed that plastic pollution will multiply if nothing changes, the researchers explained that there are several tangible ways to work to reduce pollution -- and they come with several benefits. 

Improving recycling habits, opting for compostable items when possible, and increasing waste collection are just a handful of ways that real change can be made. And while all these efforts would work in reducing how much plastic lands in the ocean, there are more benefits than many consumers may realize. 

For starters, adopting these habits would create hundreds of thousands of jobs while also providing a huge environmental boost by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, being more proactive about plastic pollution in these ways could ultimately reduce ocean pollution by 80 percent. 

The researchers hope that consumers realize minor actions can add up and that plastic pollution in the oceans isn’t a doomed issue. With consistent efforts, significant strides can be made. 

“Our results indicate that the plastic crisis is solvable,” said researcher Martin Stuchtey. “It took a generation to create this challenge; this report shows we can solve it in one generation. We have today all the solutions required to stem plastic flows by more than 80 percent. What we now need is the industry and government resolve to do so.” 

Although the COVID-19 pandemic is continuing to rage on, health officials are still taking time to address other areas of concern in public health. That includes addressing the opioid epidemic. 

On Thursday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a new rule that will require opioid manufacturers to include a recommendation on opioid labels that prompts consumers to talk with their doctor about naloxone when renewing or beginning a new treatment. Agency officials say the new labels will give consumers more information about the opioid overdose medicine.

“Today’s action can help further raise awareness about this potentially life-saving treatment for individuals that may be at greater risk of an overdose and those in the community most likely to observe an overdose,” said FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen M. Hahn.

Stopping overdoses

This isn’t the first time that federal officials have attempted to bring awareness to naloxone. Back in 2018, the Surgeon General noted that all consumers should carry the medicine so that they can be in a position to save a life. 

“Each day, we lose 115 Americans to an opioid overdose -- that’s one person every 12.5 minutes,” Surgeon General Dr. Jerome M. Adams said at the time. “It is time to make sure more people have access to this lifesaving medication, because 77 percent of opioid overdose deaths occur outside of a medical setting and more than half occur at home.”

Dr. Hahn echoed this sentiment in the FDA’s recent announcement, saying that putting the medication in the hands of those who need it is a top priority.

“We will use all available tools to address this crisis, and we know efforts to increase access to naloxone have the potential to put an important medicine for combatting opioid overdose and death in the hands of those who need it most -- those at increased risk of opioid overdose and their friends and family,” he said.

Gasoline prices drifted slightly lower across much of the U.S. this week as the rising number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in many states discouraged travel.

The AAA Fuel Gauge Survey shows the national average price of regular gas is $2.18 a gallon, down from $2.20 a week ago. The average price remains 57 cents a gallon less than at this time a year ago. The average price of premium gas is $2.79 a gallon, a penny less than last Friday. The average price of diesel fuel is $2.43 a gallon, the same as it has been for several weeks.

AAA says prices have remained very stable this week; one-third of states saw gas prices fall slightly and only 10 states saw gas prices increase by two to four cents. State averages saw minimal fluctuation as demand roughly held steady over the last four weeks. 

“During the last month, demand has averaged about 8.6 million barrels a day while gasoline stocks have steadily declined,” said Jeanette Casselano, AAA’s spokesperson. “Week by week, we are seeing mostly regional fluctuation at the pump based on gasoline supply and demand.”

Because of the coronavirus, gasoline demand has not been anything close to normal for the last four months. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports that consumers are using about 8.6 million barrels of gasoline a day.

Demand for fuel is 6 percent less than at this time last year. Despite cutbacks at oil refineries, gasoline supplies are still 7 percent higher year-over-year.

Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio saw average gas prices fall around six cents a gallon this week while prices were up around 4 cents in New Mexico.

The states with the most expensive gas

These states currently have the highest prices for regular gas, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Survey:

• Hawaii ($3.24)

• California ($3.14)

• Washington ($2.80)

• Oregon ($2.66)

• Nevada ($2.64)

• Alaska ($2.53)

• Colorado ($2.46)

• Pennsylvania ($2.44)

• Illinois ($2.37)

• Arizona ($2.35)

The states with the cheapest regular gas

The survey found these states currently have the lowest prices for regular gas:

• Mississippi ($1.84)

• Louisiana ($1.86)

• Arkansas ($1.89)

• Alabama ($1.89)

• Texas ($1.90)

• Missouri ($1.91)

• Oklahoma ($1.91)

• South Carolina ($1.91)

• Tennessee ($1.92)

• Kansas ($1.98)

Nissan North America is recalling 6,157 model year 2020 LEAF electric vehicles.

Under certain circumstances, the images for the back-up camera can disappear while in reverse.

Lack of an image in the back-up camera display poses the risk of a crash.

What to do

Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will update the back-up camera software free of charge.

This recall is expected to begin August 17, 2020.

Owners may contact Nissan customer service at (800) 867-7669.

Polaris Industries of Medina, Minn., is recalling about 13,700 Ranger XP 1000 & Ranger CREW XP 1000 Off-Road Vehicles, PRO XD 4000D UTVs, and Bobcat UV34 and UV34XL UTVs sold in the U.S., and Canada.

An improperly manufactured clutch component can cause the engine braking feature to fail, resulting in unexpected vehicle motion, posing a crash hazard.

The firm has received 14 reports of unexpected motion or drive clutch locking, including one report of a crash resulting in property damage. No injuries have been reported.

This recall involves model year 2020 Ranger XP 1000 & Ranger CREW XP 1000 Off-Road Vehicles, model year 2019-2020 PRO XD 4000D UTVs, and model year 2020 Bobcat UV34 & UV34XL UTVs.

The vehicles were sold in maroon, black, sand, green, orange, blue, camo, gray and white, and have two or four seats.

For PRO XD and Ranger models, “POLARIS” is stamped on the front grille and “POLARIS PRO XD” or “Ranger” is printed on the sides of the rear cargo area.

For Bobcat models, “Bobcat” is printed on the sides of the rear cargo area.

The VINs included in this recall can be found stamped into the left rear vehicle frame below the cargo box.

The following model names are included in this recall:

The vehicles, manufactured in the U.S., and Poland, were sold at

Polaris dealers nationwide from September 2019, through April 2020, for between $14,600 and $26,300.

What to do

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled vehicles and contact a Polaris dealer to schedule a free inspection and repair, if needed. Polaris is notifying dealers and contacting registered owners directly.

Consumers may contact Polaris at (800) 765-2747 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (CT) Monday through Friday or online at www.polaris.com and click on “Off Road Safety Recalls” at the bottom of the page for more information.

Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) is recalling 3,615 model year 2019 A220s.

The air conditioning condensation drain hose may not be installed properly. This may allow water to enter the driver and passenger foot wells and the center tunnel area, potentially damaging certain electrical components.

Water entering electrical components, can result in malfunctions of the supplemental restraint system (SRS), failure to start, activation of the limp-home mode while driving, and an impairment of other features, increasing the risk of injury or crash.

What to do

MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the air conditioning drain hose installation, correcting it -- if necessary -- free of charge.

This recall is expected to begin September 15, 2020.

Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at (800) 367-6372.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) tally as compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Previous numbers in parentheses.)

Total U.S. confirmed cases: 3,987,584 (3,915,780)

Total U.S. deaths: 143,446 (142,095)

Total global cases: 15,284,136 (15,000,424)

Total global deaths: 624,665 (617,832)

Airlines toughen mask requirements

United Airlines isn’t the only carrier laying down tougher face-covering rules this week. American and Southwest have upped the ante as well.

American says it will no longer allow any exceptions to its requirement that all passengers wear masks on its flights to prevent the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). The only exception to the mask rule is children under age two. It previously exempted passengers with medical conditions.

Southwest has adopted a similar policy, requiring all passengers to mask up. The airline says passengers who can’t meet that requirement should stay home.

GOP unveils its stimulus plan

Talks continue between Republicans and Democrats on the next round of stimulus payments, including an extension of the extra unemployment payment that expires at the end of the month.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, in an interview with CNBC today, said the GOP plan is based on providing out-of-work Americans with about 70 percent of their previous earnings. Some Republicans have said the current $600 a week bonus contained in the CARES Act pays many people more than they made when they had a job.

Congress must get busy if it expects to hammer out a plan acceptable to both sides before a looming deadline. Not only do many benefits expire at the end of July, but lawmakers are going on a month-long vacation starting August 7.

Unemployment rolls still growing

Despite hopes that the job market is recovering from the hammer blow of the coronavirus pandemic, there was an increase last week in the number of people going on unemployment. The Labor Department reports that new claims for jobless benefits totaled 1.4 million, an increase from the week before.

California, which is grappling with an outbreak of the virus and has reclosed a number of businesses, saw the biggest increase in new claims with another 292,673 people beginning to draw benefits. Georgia and Florida also reported a huge spike in claims.

Yelp doesn’t expect many restaurants to reopen

Yelp likes to think it has its finger on the pulse of small business, but its analysts lately aren’t finding much of a pulse for America’s smallest businesses, especially restaurants. It says many small eateries forced to close during the pandemic aren’t likely to reopen.

In a report, Yelp says 60 percent of the 26,160 temporarily closed restaurants listed on the review site as of this month are now permanently closed. It further reports that temporary closures are declining while permanent shutdowns are increasing. 

Back in April, Yelp reported 175,000 total businesses were closed in some way. Three months later, fewer than 25 percent of those businesses have reopened their doors.

Credit availability continues to shrink

A survey by credit card site CompareCards reveals that about 70 million people – more than one-third of credit cardholders –  involuntarily had a credit limit reduced or a credit card account closed in a 60-day period from mid-May to mid-July.

In April, the site conducted a similar survey and was stunned to see that 50 million consumers had immediately lost access to credit as the economy began to shut down and layoffs began to skyrocket.

Lenders appear to still be trying to minimize their risk as unemployment rises. So far at least, consumers appear to be managing to pay their credit card bills as credit defaults actually went down over the last four months.

Around the nation

• Georgia: Gwinnett County Public Schools, deciding it is too dangerous to teach students in person when classes restart this coming school year, will transition to all-online learning in the fall. The school district, the largest in Georgia, had previously planned a hybrid in-person/online school year.

• Wisconsin: Four more Wisconsin cities -- Racine, Green Bay, Whitewater, and Superior -- have enacted mandatory mask orders, joining Madison and Milwaukee. The cities have acted as Gov. Tony Evers has declined to issue a statewide mask mandate.  

• Arizona: Researchers modeling the state’s COVID-19 progress say things have gotten better since the spike in cases in June and early July, but they have urged Gov. Doug Ducey not to let up on restrictions they credit for the turnaround. Many of those restrictions are set to expire Monday.

Medicare is putting its subscribers on high alert that scammers are out in force trying to shake down America’s senior citizens with a battery of coronavirus-related swindles.

The scammers are attempting to get consumers’ Medicare numbers, and they accomplish that by saying they’ll take the information in exchange for a product like a face mask. 

The bag of tricks the scammers use include robocalls, text messages, ads, emails, social media posts, and even going door-to-door offering free face masks, free COVID-19 testing kits, cures, and protective equipment. 

What happens if a scammer gets someone’s Medicare number?

The scammers want Medicare numbers for one thing: to benefit themselves. The sad thing is that when that happens, beneficiaries face potential harms. 

“The personal information collected can be used to fraudulently bill Federal health care programs and commit medical identity theft,” the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General warns. 

“If Medicare or Medicaid denies the claim for an unapproved test, the beneficiary could be responsible for the cost.”

How to protect yourself from Medicare fraud

Federal officials in charge of the Medicare program are offering five essential reminders that subscribers can use to keep the fraudsters at bay:

1. Medicare will never contact you for your Medicare number or for any other personal information -- unless you gave them permission in advance to call you.

2. Medicare will never call you to sell you anything. The agency is an insurance provider, nothing more and nothing less.

3. If you get a call from someone who offers you things in exchange for giving them a Medicare number, don’t do it. 

4. Medicare will never visit you at your home.

5. Medicare can’t enroll you over the phone unless you called first.

If at any time something doesn’t appear up to snuff, it’s important to call the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Their toll-free phone number is 1-800-MEDICARE.

As soon as the pandemic threw millions of Americans out of work, credit card lenders began canceling cardholder accounts and reducing credit lines. New data suggests that this trend has only accelerated.

A survey by credit card site CompareCards reveals that about 70 million people – more than one-third of credit cardholders –  involuntarily had a credit limit reduced or a credit card account closed in a 60-day period from mid-May to mid-July.

Lenders moved swiftly to reduce their risk. It was impossible for them to determine which of their customers had lost their income -- and were thus more likely to default -- and which were gainfully employed.

But the survey shows lenders haven’t tightened credit for everyone. Millennial customers were the cardholders most likely to have a credit limit reduced or account closed involuntarily. 

High-income cardholders not immune

Customers with the highest incomes -- who are often among the biggest spenders and have the highest credit limits -- were the most likely to say their credit availability had only been reduced in the wake of the pandemic.

When credit limits were reduced, the survey shows it wasn’t by a lot. The most common credit limit reduction was between $501 and $1,000. But 22 percent of customers in the survey said they saw their credit availability shrink by $5,000 or more.

About 89 percent of those whose credit availability declined were notified by their lender of the change, but not all were given a reason. Of those who were told why there was a change in their account, about half said it was because of a decrease in their credit score or late payment.

Credit score impact

Losing access to credit will almost always send a credit score even lower. A score will go down if a credit card company reduces the cardholder’s credit limit. It could go down even more if there is a balance on the card. The credit limit reduction means the cardholder is using a higher percentage of available credit, usually a drag on credit scores.

“We're several months into the pandemic and one of the few things we know for certain is that no one knows exactly when this is going to end. Because of that, it's likely that we will see banks continue to be cautious when lending,” the authors write. 

There are some things consumers can do to make sure they aren’t the next to lose access to credit. Consider using any dormant cards more. Put a small, recurring subscription – such as Spotify or Netflix – on that little-used card to ensure that it is used each month. Then, set up automatic payments so you never pay late. 

​Tesla has filed a lawsuit claiming electric vehicle startup Rivian demonstrated a “disturbing pattern” of alleged trade secret theft, Bloomberg reports. 

Tesla claims former employees brought confidential information to Rivian upon joining the company’s team. Tesla also claims Rivian “knowingly” encouraged the conduct, which Tesla described as  “despicable, wanton, oppressive, willful, malicious, [and] duplicitous.”

Tesla has named four former employees in the suit (Tami Pascale, Kim Wong, Jessica Siron and Carrington Bradley) and says additional individuals may also have shared confidential information with Rivian after leaving Tesla. 

“In about the past week, Tesla has discovered a disturbing pattern of employees who are departing for Rivian surreptitiously stealing Tesla trade secret, confidential, and proprietary information — information that is especially useful for startup electric vehicle company. And Rivian encourages those thefts even though Rivian is well aware of Tesla employees’ confidentiality obligations,” Tesla said in the filing. 

Rivian denies allegations

Rivian, which has hired 178 former Tesla employees, has refuted Tesla’s claims. 

“We admire Tesla for its leadership in resetting expectations of what an electric car can be,” a spokesperson for Rivian said in a statement. 

“Upon joining Rivian, we require all employees to confirm that they have not, and will not, introduce former employers’ intellectual property into Rivian systems. This suit’s allegations are baseless and run counter to Rivian’s culture, ethos and corporate policies.”